Wild & Crazy Police Chase Through Sunnyside
- Susan Heavilin
- Jul 8
- 2 min read
My family was heading out when they encountered seven police cars moving at a high rate of speed with lights flashing and sirens wailing.
I—at home—originally thought I was hearing firetrucks in route to another neighborhood fire. We just had a big one on the evening of the Fourth of July.
But I didn't smell smoke or notice any flames or haze.
The Sheriff's (ASTREA) helicopter was circling nearby, gradually moving east, then west and finally south.
I called various neighbors to find out what they knew.
The first was located in the 5600 block of San Miguel. He had no news but reported the haze went all the way to the Pacific Ocean so it probably was not a fire. About that time, the ASTREA arrived in his view.
The second neighbor was at the east end of San Miguel Road but he couldn't see anything from his position.
The third neighbor . . . JACKPOT! . . . lived mid-San Miguel Road in the 5900 block. She verified that there had been seven police cars in a very big hurry.
She mentioned that she had talked to another neighbor on Speyers Road—just south of Jonel Way—who had a front row seat. He said the police had cornered a stolen Frito-Lay truck right in front of his home. All the police had their guns drawn and aimed at the driver of the stolen truck. The driver yelled out, "Don't shoot!" They must have eased their stance because he jumped the fence and took off running. She thought that he was probably armed because of the response he generated.
A homeowner on Proctor Valley Road heard the helicopter announce "Very dangerous." A different homeowner perched atop the Bonita Highlands hill, kept a watchful eye out for everyone's safety.
Still another San Miguel Road resident gave the following information heard on a police scanner:
The runner was finally captured in the San Miguel Ranch community (located just above Bonita-Sunnyside) in Eastlake (Chula Vista).
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